Hopeless Watched You Break This Heart Of Mine
by racefh853629
Summary: "He was still alive. He had survived, made it through, come out to the other side."
1. Prologue: Erin

A/N: I don't own Blue Bloods, CBS, or any other known entity. The title for this story comes from the song "Never Again" by Justin Timberlake, which I also do not own. This story is going to have a few darker themes (as will become evident in the next few chapters), so be forewarned. Also, this story will focus (at times) on just about every family member (as in a family member being the focus of the chapter). I hope to have quasi-regular updates, but I never make guarantees because life gets busy. And I also have not completely abandoned my other chapter stories that are in progress right now on my profile, but my muses for them have hidden behind the one for this story. And as this note is turning into its own novel, I'll conclude with my hope that you guys enjoy the chapter and please review.

* * *

Prologue

Her fingers ran through the short tufts of hair that were sticking out in various directions. She closed her eyes as she smiled slightly, thinking of him being upset if he saw himself right now. He didn't care much for being disheveled.

But, he wasn't exactly in a position to worry about that right now.

She shook her head as her hand continued to stroke his hair, reassuring herself that he was, in fact, there before her. He was still alive. He had survived, made it through, come out to the other side.

Albeit barely.

Tears welled up behind her eyes as her fingers kept moving along his scalp. Normally, his hair was soft, but right now it was matted by the blood caked within it. She knew Linda would come by shortly, and maybe she could convince her sister-in-law to clean it up.

Then again, the bandages were in the way…

Erin closed her eyes, swallowing. She couldn't stand sitting here, knowing there was nothing she could do for the man before her. She couldn't make him wake up, which meant that there was nothing she could do to try to help the emotional fallout that was bound to happen in the aftermath.

The ventilator clicked on again.

Every time she heard it start, she knew it was breathing life into the man before her. But it did less to comfort her than the beeping of the heart monitor beside her. The heart monitor meant his heart was beating on its own, even if his lungs couldn't breathe without help. The blood pressure cuff clicked on, too, and she found herself anxiously awaiting the response.

98/64. Still too low.

Her eyes drifted up toward the fluid bags hanging above the bed, wishing for them to take over and raise his blood pressure. Though, too high, and it wouldn't do him any better, either. She kept praying that things would end up being okay as she sat on his bed, stroking his hair. She tried not to cry.

He didn't need that right now.

A soft knock interrupted her thoughts, followed by Linda walking in. She gave Erin a sympathetic smile before hugging her. Erin sighed, squeezing her sister-in-law gently. The family had decided to rotate shifts, rather than having everyone crowding in the room. Erin's had ended, the next one was beginning.

"His hair needs some washing, huh?" Linda asked softly.

Erin nodded, not trusting her voice to speak.

"Tell them to give me about 15 minutes, please?"

Erin nodded again.

Linda patted her sister-in-law on the shoulder gently. Erin gave her a small smile before turning to the man in the bed. She gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead, whispering, "I'll see you later." She stood up, nodded at Linda, and left the room. She almost made it off the unit before the tears fell down her face in a heavy rain.

* * *

Erin somehow found her way through her tears into the nearby waiting room, finding her father waiting there. Frank stood up to meet her in the doorway. "How's your brother?" he asked softly.

"The same," she replied quietly.

Frank sighed softly, nodding slowly. "And, you?"

Erin looked at him in response.

He nodded again, reaching forward and hugging her. She hugged back to him tightly, burying her head against his shoulder. He rubbed her on the back, barely keeping it together himself as he held his middle child in his arms.

Henry made his way back into the room, finding the two of them standing there. "Please tell me…" he started.

"No change," Erin interrupted, turning away from Frank's shoulder to face her grandfather.

Henry sighed, closing his eyes briefly. "Never thought I could actually be _glad_ to hear that."

Frank said nothing, keeping his arm around his daughter protectively.

"Blood pressure's still low," Erin said. "He's on the ventilator with the dozens of IVs…" Her voice trailed off as tears threatened.

Frank gave her a gentle squeeze.

"Who would do this to him?" Henry asked.

"He has plenty of enemies," Erin commented softly. "Any one of them could've gotten to him."

Henry sighed, shaking his head. "Linda with him right now?"

Erin nodded. "She asked for a few minutes."

Henry took a drink from the coffee he procured.

Erin bit her lip quietly, trying to keep her tears at bay.

"We'll get whoever did this," Frank said gently, hugging his daughter close.

But no one dared to venture if the perpetrator would be arrested for assault or murder.


	2. Chapter 1: Linda

A/N: Thank you all so much for all the reviews! I couldn't be mean and make you guys wait too much longer to find out who's in the bed (though some of you already know). See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter One

Linda made her way back to the bed with a basin full of soapy water and a few linens. Though some the staff on her unit had initially offered some resistance toward her request, they conceded when they realized that she was more interested in caring for him than anything else. She rolled her eyes, shaking her head at the politics of hospital life.

The ventilator clicked on, reminding her of why she was here- to take care of him.

"Don't worry," she told him softly. "We'll get you lookin' as good as new."

She wet a face cloth, working through the exposed hair. Hair that was discolored a deep auburn by the blood contained within. She cleaned out as much as she could get to, knowing that there was more under the bandages.

Bandages she wasn't going to move.

She dried his hair as best she could before grabbing another face cloth. She wet it before cleaning up his face, covered with scabs that she cared not to pull off. The bruises stood out amongst his pale skin, marring an otherwise good-looking complexion. His entire posture looked so peaceful, so restful, that she almost thought he was just sleeping.

Until the ventilator clicked on again, reminding her that he wasn't doing so well.

Once she was done, she put the used face cloths in the dirty towel, wrapping them into a little ball before heading out of the room to throw them in the linen basket. Then, she walked back in, emptying out the basin. She checked the bandages, finding them to be dry. She glanced up at the machine measuring his vitals as soon as the blood pressure cuff stopped its reading.

99/72.

Linda sighed softly. He'd been up on the floor for almost three hours, and he still hadn't gotten above 100. She knew the nurses were aware, as was the resident on the floor, but the risk of him going too high was greater than the benefits the medications could temporarily afford him. Especially since the cause of his low blood pressure was easily explained.

Blood loss from extensive injuries and a long surgical session.

Out of habit, she glanced at the IV sites on his arms before sitting down beside him on the bed. Blood was hanging right now, but would be done within the hour. Then more lab work to see where his blood counts were, how his electrolytes were doing…

Mostly to see what else the vitals couldn't tell.

She frowned, putting her hand over his quietly. The cast prevented her from doing more than that. She bit her lip as she shook her head slowly. "They'll find out who did this to you," she told the unconscious man before her.

The only response came from the ventilator.

Sarah, one of her colleagues, walked in, giving Linda a sympathetic look. "How's he doing?" she asked.

"'Bout the same," Linda replied sadly.

"Only been three hours."

"I know." Linda scoffed slightly. "Try explainin' that to my husband, though."

Sarah smirked lightly. "Yeah, I bet." She looked closer at the EKG machine. "From what you've said about your in-laws, I'm surprised they're not all here."

Linda shrugged. "Erin just left. I asked her to give me a few minutes to clean up his hair, but her, Frank, and Henry are probably all in the waiting room. Nicki's got the boys at home. And Danny… Danny's out tryin' to find the son-of-a-bitch who did this."

"May God help them if he does."

Linda laughed slightly. "You have no idea."

Sarah nodded with a smile. "You holdin' up okay?"

Linda looked down at Jamie's unmoving form. "Yeah. Thanks."

"Of course," Sarah said. "You need anything else, you let me know."

"Will do."

"Any clue who's coming in next?"

Linda tilted her head back and forth as she turned to Sarah. "Probably Henry. Frank'll insist on it."

"Should we set up a cot in here tonight?"

Linda shrugged. "Might as well. No way in hell he's gonna be by himself here tonight. Especially because whoever did this to him is still out there."

"Hence the extra security."

Linda nodded. "NYPD'll post someone outside the door. Either Frank, Henry, or Danny'll stay inside. And tell night shift that they're gonna have to identify themselves and wear their badges every night, because I know sometimes they don't."

"Yeah," Sarah said. "You gonna go home now that you're done?"

Linda shrugged. "At least to grab a shower and feed the kids."

Sarah nodded sadly.

"Then… I don't know. I gotta work that out with Erin."

Sarah reached out, squeezing Linda's shoulder gently. "You take care of yourself," she said. "I've got your brother-in-law for the night."

Linda nodded, patting Jamie's hand as she stood. "I'm gonna head out," she said softly. "I'll see you later."

Sarah nodded, watching quietly as Linda made her way out of the room before turning to Jamie. "You've got a great family," she said softly. "You might wanna come back to them."

The ventilator responded for him.


	3. Chapter 2: Danny

A/N: Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews! Answers to your questions are coming, I promise. See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Two

To say Danny was pissed was an understatement. Nine hours ago, the first solid lead came through in this case when a tourist found what she had thought was a dead body in an alley.

It was Jamie.

Nothing in Danny's career had ever prepared him for what he rolled up on in that alley. He and Maria had been grabbing coffee around the corner, and had decided to respond to the call. Part of Danny had hoped that it _was_ Jamie, because that meant the nightmare of a missing brother would be over.

But instead, a whole new nightmare began.

When Danny had reached his brother's side, he had immediately crouched down and felt for a pulse. Weak and thready. Breaths shallow, rapid, and full of bubbling mucus. Blood pooling underneath the unconscious man, deep red and clotting. Face barely recognizable under the bruises, cuts, and drying blood. Limbs bent in unnatural arrangements, chest rising unevenly.

Danny had feared, for the first time, that Jamie wasn't going to make it.

Danny had held his hand on top of Jamie's chest lightly, feeling the displacement of his younger brother's ribs as he breathed. Danny had closed his eyes, biting his lip. "Stay with me," he had told his kid brother. "Just stay with me."

Jamie hadn't responded.

And now, Jamie was up in the ICU, and Danny was cursing the boxes of evidence before him that held way more questions than answers. Maria had run out for Chinese, leaving Danny to attempt to untangle what they know and what they don't.

The biggest unknown: who had held Jamie for two days.

Nothing found in the alley provided any clues in that regard. And no leads the investigation had previously turned up bared any fruit from anywhere except the headache tree. Danny scrubbed his hand over his face in aggravation. Nothing had been going right in this case since day one.

What he did know was that Jamie never made it into work on Monday. And the last time anyone had seen him was when he left Sunday night dinner with the family. His wrecked car was found four miles away from his apartment, broken into with blood inside that had been positively identified as Jamie's. Obvious signs of a struggle. Jamie's off-duty weapon was found in the glove compartment.

No indication Jamie ever got to it.

Danny sighed heavily, dropping his head down toward the desk. Four miles from Jamie's apartment didn't mean that was where Jamie was abducted. That only meant that was where his car was dumped. Although towed was more likely, given marks on the undercarriage. So he had no idea where Jamie went missing from, though his best guess was somewhere between his father's house and his brother's apartment. And that was too many streets to cover for clues that might not even be there.

More dead ends.

Danny shook his head, flipping through the file. The key to solving this was currently unconscious in the ICU on a ventilator, unable to answer any questions. Fighting for his life. Danny pushed the last thought out of his mind. Nothing he could do would make Jamie get better any faster, but he could at least make sure someone paid for it.

* * *

Maria walked back in, passing a container over to him. "Anythin'?" she asked.

"Canvass of the alley got nothin'," Danny replied. "Lab's still workin' on the evidence they got from Jamie. Evidence from the car turned up nothin' new, but CSU's sweepin' it again now that Jamie's been found to find any trace that matches where he might've been held."

The file with the photographs remained untouched, something that didn't go unnoticed by Maria as she handed Danny a container with food. "Pictures give you anythin'?" she probed gently.

"I haven't looked at them," he acknowledged.

She nodded.

He sighed again. "It's my kid brother, Maria," he said softly.

"I know," she replied.

He rested his hand atop the folder briefly.

"There could be an answer in there," she urged.

"Or more questions," he countered bitterly.

"Never know until you look."

"You seen 'em?"

She half-nodded, half-shrugged. "I'm not the great and wonderful Danny Reagan, but I think there might be somethin' there."

Danny snorted slightly. "Great and wonderful, huh?"

Maria smirked. "So I hear, anyway."

He pulled the folder closer to him.

"How is Jamie doing?" she asked, taking a bite of her food.

He sighed. "Transferred up to the ICU. Blood pressure's still low, but gettin' better. Surgery went well, but he's on the vent until his lung heals up enough that another tear isn't a problem. Crushed ribs, broken wrist, broken leg. Tons of bruises, cuts, burns all over. Not to mention the concussion and slight swellin' that _hopefully_ hasn't done any permanent damage." Danny shook his head. "Kid got beat to hell, burned, cut up. And we can't find a single thing about who did this."

"We'll find them, Danny," she assured him.

"He wasn't undercover," he replied. "Wasn't an old assignment that came back to bite him. All of them are either still in prison or had an alibi. He's got enemies, but…"

"But?"

Danny exhaled slowly. "But what if this wasn't about Jamie at all?"


	4. Chapter 3: Frank

A/N: Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews! They've been much appreciated, especially of late. See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one as well. :)

* * *

Chapter Three

Frank preferred to stand by the windows near his son's bed rather than sit on the chair or cot set up in the room. Henry and Erin were camped out in the waiting room with Linda while Nicki continued to watch the boys. Danny was buried amidst the evidence in the case. And though Frank had warned Danny's sergeant to have him pulled from investigating, he knew there was no way Danny would've stayed back.

Better to go with the devil you know.

The door creaked open, and his oldest son made his way in slowly. Frank looked over, finding Danny hesitating just inside the door frame. Initially, neither one spoke as Danny stared at his youngest brother's unconscious form, hooked up to a dozen wires and lines. Danny closed his eyes, sighing softly.

"How's the case?" Frank asked after a moment, distracting Danny from the sight of his battered younger brother.

"Spinnin' our wheels," Danny sighed as he turned to his father. "Tryin' to match trace from the car to trace from…" Danny cut his eyes to his brother before looking back at his father. "Maybe it can give us a hint as to where they kept him."

"More than one?"

Danny nodded sadly. "Bruises in shape of fists came in at least two different sizes, one much smaller than the others. Some of the markings were from long nails."

Frank furrowed his brow. "So, a woman is involved?"

Danny shrugged. "Possibly. Too early to say for sure."

Frank nodded. "And we have no idea where they held him or how they got him."

"How was answered by the car," Danny reminded Frank gently. "They'd hit the car then took him out. Where is a different story. We got nothin' on that. Other than it wasn't where we found the car. We found scratches underneath the car from it being towed."

"So they towed a damaged car through the streets and left it four miles from Jamie's apartment."

"Yeah. And we have no idea why they left it there other than it probably wouldn't have seemed out of place."

Frank nodded again, looking from his oldest son to his youngest. He was trying to think of anyone who would have a motive to hurt his youngest child, but was drawing a blank.

"We're also considerin' that this has less to do with Jamie and more to do with someone else," Danny stated grimly.

"I'd already considered that myself," Frank replied. "Baker's pulling files on my side. Erin's office is doing the same."

"Baez is coverin' mine." Danny shifted his weight to lean against the wall, still a fair distance from Jamie.

Frank noticed Danny's hesitation to come near his brother, but didn't say anything about it.

"We'll find them, Dad," Danny assured him.

Frank nodded again.

Danny sighed, scrubbing his hand down his face. "I'm gonna head out, grab a shower, and get back to it," he said softly. "Sooner we find these guys…"

"It's not going to bring him back faster," Frank reminded him.

"I know that. But at least there's less risk they'll come back after him."

Frank said nothing.

Danny exhaled slowly, finally crossing the room to his brother's bed. He leaned in, stroking Jamie's clean but unkempt hair. "You get better," Danny instructed the younger Reagan softly. "I'm gonna find out who did this to you, and I'll make them pay, but you gotta come back to us."

The ventilator clicked in response.

Danny sniffled slightly, standing up straight. "See ya later, Pop," he said, leaving the room.

Frank simply nodded at his son's retreating form. He turned his attention back to his youngest child, seeing the damaged figure of someone who looked like a man and a child at the same time.

Jamie looked small and fragile in the bed, broken and hidden amongst the sheets, wires, and tubes. His expression was peaceful, despite his features being marred by various injuries. Superficial injuries, as Frank had been told, injuries that would heal.

It was the internal ones that were of most concern.

Head trauma. Chest trauma. Abdominal trauma. Internal bleeding. Swelling. All words that added up to bad outcomes. Broken bones, too, but those were easier to heal than some of the others.

And that didn't even account for the emotional trauma.

Then, of course, there was the question of how much of Jamie was still in there. Assuming there was no lasting damage to Jamie's brain, how much would he remember about what happened? How much damage was done by his captors? Would he be able to cope with what happened? Would he eventually get back to himself?

What would become of him?

Frank sighed, looking away from his son to stare out the window. If anyone could figure out who did this, it was Danny. And if Jamie's captors were to happen to get injured in the process… well… then, they must have resisted.

Frank scratched his chin contemplatively. Despite his fears, he knew that as long as Jamie had the family, he'd be okay. They all loved him, would support him, and would be there for him as long as he needed. Jamie would be okay.

He just had to come back to them.


	5. Chapter 4: Henry

A/N: You guys rock! Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews! :) See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review.

* * *

Chapter Four

Henry woke up around the time Frank walked in with coffee. The two of them had spent the night inside Jamie's hospital room, while Danny worked on the case and Erin and Linda stayed with the kids. Henry sat up on the cot, stretching before taking the cup from his son. "Did you sleep?" he asked the younger man.

Frank sighed, taking a drink from his coffee.

"It's not doing Jamie any good if you don't," Henry chided.

"I know," Frank replied, staring at his youngest son.

"Danny come up with anything?"

Frank took another drink. "Nothing yet."

"What about the Templar?"

"Danny's on it."

Henry looked away from the pained expression on his son's face to the battered, peaceful expression on his grandson's. Henry's heart ached as he entertained the thought that once again, he would have to bury a grandchild, one who died way too soon at the hands of someone else. Though Henry had faith that Danny would figure out who, he knew that it wouldn't help Jamie right now.

Only God could do that.

Henry took a drink from his coffee, sighing as he slowly stood up. He wasn't getting any younger, and his entire body was consistently stiff every morning. Though he wasn't sure if it was worse this morning because he slept in a cot instead of his own bed, or if it just felt that way amidst everything else that was going on.

He made his way over to Jamie's bed before lowering himself beside his grandson. The younger man didn't react as Henry grabbed his hand, which was to be expected at this point. But Henry would never be comfortable with the situation at hand: an unconscious family member fighting for his life.

And he had no doubt Jamie was fighting. His vital signs proved that. And as the blood pressure cuff clicked on, both Frank and Henry watched the screen in anticipation.

105/68.

The numbers had been getting better throughout the night, and they were aware that his blood counts had risen and stayed up, indicating that he was not seriously bleeding, though his urine was coming out a reddish orange. Doctors assured them it was due to kidney trauma, that they had scanned his kidneys and saw no cause for serious concern. They assured the family that the blood would go away on its own, and if it didn't, they would go back in.

Henry took another drink of coffee.

"You should go home, Francis," Henry tried. "Get some rest. I'll stay here."

"I'm fine, Pop," Frank replied quietly.

"You're not doing Jamie any good by not sleeping."

"You've said that already."

"I know, but it usually takes two or three times before it sinks in."

Frank gave a half-smile and a nod.

"Go home, Francis," Henry repeated. "Jamie won't mind. We'll let you know if anything changes."

Frank exhaled slowly, but nodded at his father's request. He made his way over to his youngest, stroking Jamie's hair before leaning in closer. He whispered something to Jamie before kissing him on the forehead. He backed away, gave Henry's shoulder a gentle squeeze, and headed out the door.

"Your father loves you," Henry said to Jamie. "Hell, we all do. We just want you to get better."

The ventilator clicked on.

"I know you can hear us. I know you're in there. And I know it hurts, but it will get better. You just keep fighting, keep getting stronger. We'll find who did this to you, and we'll get them. I promise you that. We will get them."

No response from Jamie.

"They're trying to tell us that you're gonna have brain damage or something when you wake up, but we know better. You're head's far too thick for that. I see it every time you go to battle with Danny." Henry smiled to himself at the memory. "You're one of the strongest of us."

Jamie's hand twitched underneath Henry's, and though the doctor had said that it was merely a reflex and didn't mean anything, it meant the world to Henry.

Because it meant Jamie was still in there. Jamie was fighting. His body was recovering, and his mind would surely follow. And though it would definitely take Jamie a while to recover, Henry was confident the younger man would be okay eventually.

He just had to wake up first.


	6. Chapter 5: Nicki

A/N: Thank you all so much for the incredible reviews! See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one as well, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Five

Nicki was in the waiting room with Erin, Frank, Linda, and the boys when the clock struck noon. Being that she was almost 17, she heard most of what the adults were talking about, which was that the day after finding Jamie had produced few new leads in the case other than the knowledge that he had managed to escape and run. And that no one could be sure exactly how far he had gone, but evidence from his feet had tracked back at least two miles from where he was found.

Nicki couldn't even imagine, running two miles into uncertainty. Because even though Jamie had escaped, the people that took him could've been anywhere, any one. They could be waiting to come back for him. They were still out there, and until they were found, Jamie was in danger.

"Nicki," Linda said, drawing her attention. "Do you want to go see Uncle Jamie?"

"Can I?" Nicki asked.

Linda nodded. "You're old enough."

"Can we go?" Jack asked.

"No, honey," Linda said. "You gotta be 16."

Erin leaned over to Nicki. "It's actually 14," she said with a wink.

Nicki smiled and nodded as Henry made his way into the waiting room. Erin put her arm around Nicki gently. "Do you want to go?" she asked.

Nicki nodded. "I need to," she said softly.

Erin nodded, leading her daughter out of the waiting room and into the ICU. From the second she walked on the unit, Nicki could see why people would go crazy in this place. Beeping from every room, alarms going off at random for various issues, visitors crying over their loved ones. It was enough to make her sick.

Erin seemed to notice, and pulled her daughter closer.

The pair acknowledged the NYPD officers outside Jamie's room before entering and closing the door behind them. Jamie lay still in the bed, most of his exposed skin covered in deep purple hues. The rest remained buried in blankets and bandages.

Nicki closed her eyes.

She tried to picture Jamie, smiling and happy, and found herself seeing him as he was now. She opened her eyes as she walked over to the bed, sitting down beside him. She picked up his hand in hers, closing her eyes as she began to pray silently.

She prayed that he would be okay, that he would wake up soon. That he would be normal, the same fun, loving, caring uncle he had always been.

She prayed he wouldn't die like Joe.

She remembered how Joe had a great sense of humor, and in a lot of ways, Jamie was like him. Big hearted, easy smile, always there when for their friends and family. She remembered how sad it was when Joe had died four year ago, and she couldn't imagine going through it again.

"He's doing better today," Erin said, interrupting Nicki's thoughts. "Doctors say his lungs look stronger. He may not be on the ventilator too much longer."

Nicki nodded as she looked over at her mother. "I see why the boys aren't allowed in here," she said softly.

Erin nodded sadly.

"Uncle Danny any closer to figuring this out?"

"I don't know," Erin answered honestly as she shrugged. "I hope so, but I don't know."

"He ran at least two miles?" Nicki asked, looking back at Jamie.

"Yeah."

"I don't know if I could do that."

"I don't know if I could either," Erin acknowledged.

"Mom, is he going to die?" Nicki asked bluntly, looking back to Erin.

Erin bit her lip. "I don't know, honey," she replied earnestly. "I can't say for sure either way. Though, I can tell you that Uncle Jamie is strong, and that the doctors say he's having a better day."

"If he doesn't die, will he wake up?"

"I wish I could answer that for you, too. I wish I could tell you everything is going to be okay, but I can't lie to you."

Nicki nodded, taking the answers in stride as she looked back at her uncle. She somehow had known her mother's answers long before they were spoken, and hearing them aloud did nothing to comfort her or make her more upset. She wasn't sure if he was hurt worse than he looked, or if he looked worse than he was hurt, though she suspected it might be the first of the two. After all, Sean hadn't looked too badly hurt when he was in that bike accident, but it was very bad.

Sean had survived, though, which gave her faith that Jamie would, too.


	7. Chapter 6: Danny

A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! I appreciate them all so much. :) See the first chapter for the disclaimer. This chapter advances the case a little more, as will the next couple of chapters. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Six

Danny was _thisclose_ to solving one part of his brother's abduction: what they were really after. Jamie likely hadn't been the whole story. That much was certain. But what was?

As he poured through the case files with Maria, one case in particular struck him from two years ago. Jamie was the first officer on the scene with Renzulli. Danny and Jackie had taken over when they got there. And Heath Jackson, another ADA from Erin's office, had prosecuted the case with her. He had served as lead attorney up until closing arguments, during which his wife had gone into labor, so Erin had stepped in.

The murderer, Andre Jasper, was sentenced to life.

Andre was the best lead Danny and Maria had for this crime, despite his current incarceration. And as Danny thought about it, he realized that any one of the three Reagan children would have made good targets for revenge plots in this case. The first officer who had detained Andre. The detective who proved the case. The ADA who closed the conviction.

So why Jamie?

"Maybe he was just the easiest target," Maria said in response to the question Danny hadn't even realized he'd uttered out loud.

Danny glowered toward her.

"Think about it," she continued. "He's the only one of you that can be taken down without collateral damage."

She was right, Danny realized. Erin had Nicki, Frank and Henry lived together, and Danny had Linda and the boys. Jamie, however, lived alone, as he had since Sydney had left.

Sydney, who was walking up to him in the precinct with another cop by her side.

"Sydney," Danny said, standing up from his desk.

Maria looked up curiously.

"I'm sorry to just drop in like this, Danny," Sydney said nervously.

"What can I do for you?" he asked.

"Um, can we talk? In private?"

Danny shrugged. "Sure." He led her to a quiet room, leaving Maria watching with a hundred questions running through her mind.

* * *

"What can I do for you?" Danny repeated softly as he closed the door behind her.

Sydney swallowed, trying to hold back the tears. "I… I heard about Jamie," she replied quietly.

Danny nodded, but said nothing.

"I-is he… I mean, how is he?" she asked nervously.

"Hangin' on," Danny answered honestly.

Sydney sat down against the table behind her, reeling like she had been punched in the stomach. She closed her eyes, sniffling.

Danny said nothing, just watching the woman who was almost his sister-in-law three years ago crumble before him. Part of him had been angry when she'd left his little brother, but part of him had come to understand her reasons, which was actually Linda's doing, reminding him that being married to someone who was married to their job was incredibly difficult. But he hadn't completely gotten past her crushing his brother's heart when she left.

Though Jamie had never exactly _admitted_ that.

Sydney, herself, wasn't wearing a ring on her left hand at the moment, and her reaction to Jamie's condition indicated to Danny that she'd likely not moved on yet. Or, if she had, part of her was still carrying a torch for Jamie. But he couldn't really think about that at the moment.

"He's improving slowly," Danny told her. "But, he's been through a lot."

Sydney nodded, sniffling again.

Danny moved to stand beside her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Sydney."

She shook her head. "I should be saying that to you," she replied tearfully. "To you and your whole family. We… we were going to get married, but…"

"I know. Trust me, Syd, we all know."

"I just couldn't…"

"We know," he assured her, rubbing her shoulder gently.

She nodded, wiping away her tears with her hand. "You should hate me," she told him.

"None of us do. It's not easy being married to someone who's married to their job."

She smiled slightly. "How many times has Linda told you that?"

Danny smiled back. "More than I can count."

Sydney chuckled lightly before wiping away the last of her tears.

"You doin' okay otherwise?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Can't complain," she replied. "Senior associate, next in line for partner. Firm's been good to me."

"When'd you get back from London?"

"Two years ago. I would've come around sooner, but I wasn't sure how you would take it."

"You were family, Syd. That don't really go away so easy."

She nodded solemnly. "For what it's worth, I really loved Jamie. Part of me still does. He was the best friend I ever had."

Danny nodded.

Sydney straightened up. "I should be going," she said. "My lunch is almost up."

He nodded again, saying nothing.

"Thank you, Danny, for not hating me."

"We don't hate you," he told her. "None of us do. Not even Jamie."

She snorted slightly, rolling her eyes. "He probably blamed himself more than he blamed me when I left. Though, he should've blamed me."

Danny shook his head. "It's the job."

She shrugged. "Either way. Thank you for being honest, too."

"Anytime. And feel free to call or come by. Even at the hospital."

"Really?" she said, surprised.

"I already told you. You were family. That don't go away so easy."

She nodded slightly. "Erin won't kill me?"

Danny scoffed. "Erin was more upset for the scenario, not with any particular person."

Sydney nodded to herself. "Thanks."

"Anytime. I'll walk you out." Danny opened the door for her, chatting with her about the kids and the rest of the family as he walked her out of the precinct. As he made his way back to his desk, Maria looked at him questioningly.

"Jamie's ex-fiancée," he answered before she even spoke.

"Should we be looking at her as a suspect?" Maria asked.

Danny shook his head. "Sydney left him two and a half years ago, headed off to London for some case or something. She still loves him."

"Fine line between love and hate."

"Yeah, but Syd isn't the type to hurt anyone, let alone her ex-fiancée. Our best bet is to look further into Andre Jasper."

Maria nodded. "Well, in that case, I may have something…"


	8. Chapter 7: Erin

A/N: Thank you all for the reviews! Your thoughts regarding Sydney's reappearance are very interesting... ;) And have inspired me to post another chapter today. :D See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Seven

Erin was in the waiting room with Henry, Nicki, and the kids when Danny walked up alone later on in the day. "Hey sis," he said quietly. "Buy you a cup of coffee?"

Everyone in the room read that comment for what it was: a chance for Danny to talk to Erin alone. Yet, no one said anything as Erin nodded. Danny gestured for his sister to go first, and the two of them entered the elevator alone.

"What's up?" she asked him as soon as the doors closed.

"Andre Jasper," he replied.

"The murderer that got convicted last month? What about him?"

"You, me, and Jamie all worked the case."

She shrugged. "Much to the defense's playground. That's why Heath was lead on the case. I thought it'd get thrown on conflict of interest when he had to leave before closing arguments. Judge Hedley allowed it, though. Why does this matter?"

"You remember anything about his family?"

She nodded as the doors opened. "Close knit," she said as they stepped out. "Mother had five kids before the father walked out. They survived by leaning on each other, which is why they couldn't believe what Andre had done. They were devastated. It'd be like if one of us were to have…" Her voice trailed off as realization took over. "You think they did this?"

"They'd have motive," Danny replied as they walked out of the hospital to the coffee shop down the street. "Plenty of it against all of us."

"But why Jamie?" Erin asked. "You and I were a bigger part of the case than he was. He didn't even take the stand. Renzulli did."

"Yeah, but Andre sure as hell knew who Jamie was. Jamie was the one who held him at the scene."

"So you think he's involved too."

It was a statement, not a question, but Danny nodded anyway, holding the door open for his sister. "Brother Nate's sure been to visit a lot," he commented.

"Still, why Jamie?" Erin asked as they entered the shop.

"Baez's theory," Danny started. "Jamie was the easiest to get to with the least amount of collateral damage."

Erin thought about that for a moment. "Because he's single," she said.

"Exactly. Single and no kids."

"A car crash would likely injure only him."

Danny nodded. "Insuring you got the one person you wanted, and no one else has to get hurt."

"So, the question becomes, are they done after Jamie, or do we need to worry too?"

"That's a really good question, sis."

* * *

The two of them returned to the waiting room with enough coffee and hot chocolate for a small army. Nicki took the cups for herself and the boys before walking back over to where they were playing at their cousin's insistence. Frank joined the group in the waiting room, looking at his two oldest children.

Erin watched as Danny shifted his position on his feet. "We think we have a solid lead," he told them all. "We're just waiting for the approval to go see him."

"My office is working things with the courts," Erin added. "To be able to offer him an incentive to work with us."

"Who is it?" Henry asked.

"Andre Jasper," Danny replied.

"Murderer who was convicted last month," Frank said. "Mother just died a week ago."

Erin looked over as Danny said, "yeah, I know. And he has a few siblings who are probably willing to go after the family that put him away, considering Mom fell apart after Andre went upstate."

"If he's involved, he doesn't need leniency from the court," Henry grumbled.

"If he's involved, he's facing another crime and more severe punishment," Erin countered. "Not to mention his whole family going to prison. Perhaps the least we could do is get his brothers all in the same prison if they all cooperate."

"And if not, there are plenty of prisons around that they can all be in separate ones," Danny added with a grin.

"And there's evidence to suggest the sister is involved too."

"What a family," Henry remarked bitterly.

"Tell me about it," Danny replied.

Erin sighed, looking at Danny.

Danny shifted position again. "I should, uh, I should go see him," he said, gesturing toward the doors of the ICU.

"I'll go with you," Erin volunteered.

Danny looked over at her before shrugging. "After you, sis."

* * *

As the door to Jamie's room closed behind them, Erin turned to her older brother. "What else aren't you saying, Danny?" she asked abruptly.

Danny sighed. "Sydney came to see me," he replied.

"Sydney? As in…"

"Jamie's ex-fiancée, yeah."

"Why'd she come to see you?"

Danny tilted his head toward Jamie in response.

"She heard," Erin said, answering her own question.

Danny nodded. "Wanted to know how he was doing."

"What'd you tell her?"

"That he was hangin' on. Slowly improving, but that he'd been through a lot."

She nodded, looking over at Jamie.

"Told her she was welcome to come by," he continued.

"I'd like to see her again," Erin said, shrugging. "Not sure how Jamie would feel, though."

"Come on. We all know those two didn't break up because they stopped loving each other. She just couldn't handle marrying someone who was married to the job."

Erin looked back to Danny. "Yeah, I know. But sometimes, it's still not easy. Her walking out the door was heartbreaking for him."

"Yeah, I know," Danny said, mirroring Erin's previous statement. "But, she was family. That don't go away so easy."

"True," Erin conceded.

"And Jamie's gonna need all the support he can get."

"Yeah," she breathed, looking at her youngest brother solemnly. Hoping that he would just wake up. Anything else, they could deal with. But this waiting…

Danny wrapped his arm around her shoulders, as if he could read her mind. She rested her head against his shoulder. "Think if we brought him some beer, he'd wake up?" he asked with a smirk.

Erin chuckled. "Beer?" she said. "No. Whiskey or Irish coffee? Maybe."

Danny laughed slightly. "What was that thing he had as a kid that he couldn't go without?"

Erin sighed, thinking back. "Wasn't it a giraffe or something?"

Danny threw his head back slightly with a snort. "That's right. Geoffrey Giraffe."

Erin laughed. "Remember when we tried to convince him that he was spelling Geoff's name wrong because both words started with a J?"

Danny laughed. "He believed it, too. Until Joe set him straight."

Erin shook her head. "Joe was always looking out for him."

Danny shrugged. "Still is."

Erin nodded, knowing what Danny had meant by that. Jamie's injuries had been extensive, deadly to most. Yet, Jamie still managed to run a long distance in that condition to get away from his captors.

His captors…

"Wait a minute," Erin said. "How did Jamie escape?"

Danny shook his head. "Hard to tell from his injuries," he replied. "Why? What are you thinking?"

"If he fought his way out…"

"They could have turned up at a doctor's office for treatment."

"And now that we know _who_ we're looking for…"

"We can track them easier." Danny kissed Erin on the temple. "You're a genius."

Erin shrugged with a slight eye roll. "True. I'll get working on warrants for any medical records of the siblings while you two check clinics." She grabbed her phone as Danny was already rushing to the door.

"Thanks, sis."

"No problem."


	9. Chapter 8: Frank

A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! You guys rock! :) See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I promise that some things will wrap up within the next few chapters. ;) I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Eight

Frank made his way back into his youngest son's hospital room, finding his daughter sitting on the cot on the phone. He said nothing as he closed the door quietly behind him.

"Right," she said into the phone. "Yes."

Frank walked over to Jamie.

"Thank you, Your Honor. I appreciate it."

Frank looked down at Jamie before glancing toward Erin.

"He's hanging in there."

Frank looked back at Jamie wordlessly.

"I will. Yes. And thank you again, Your Honor."

Frank turned to face Erin.

"I will. You too. Have a good day, sir." She hung up the phone before typing a quick message to someone.

"Good news?" Frank asked his daughter.

"Warrants for medical records on the Jasper siblings," she replied. "Danny and Baez are heading out to canvass clinics near where Jamie was found. The warrants are open to any of their medical records from the past few days at any clinic, doctor's office, or hospital."

"Which judge gave you that blanket?"

Erin smiled slightly. "Hedley. He presided over Andre Jasper's case, and remembered what Andre did to that poor girl. So, he figured if Andre's siblings had anything to do with what Jamie had gone through, then they deserved to be behind bars as much as their brother."

Frank nodded, knowing that was why Erin had picked Hedley in the first place. He sighed quietly before saying, "so, aside from the case, what else did you need to talk to Danny in private about?"

Erin smiled wider, shaking her head. "Hard to get anything by you."

Frank simply arched his eyebrows in response.

"Sydney came to see him at the precinct," Erin told him.

Frank nodded.

"I didn't even realize she was back in New York."

"For the past two years," he said.

"Do you think Jamie knows?" Erin asked, looking at her younger brother.

"I didn't tell him."

She nodded, but said nothing.

"I thought Sydney would have reached out to him at some point."

"I think she's probably worried about our reactions."

Frank shook his head. "She's family," he said.

"That's what Danny said, too," Erin replied.

Frank snorted slightly but nodded.

Erin sighed softly, looking at Jamie. "Even if we are right, it's not going to help him," she said.

Frank shrugged one shoulder. "It would keep him and the rest of you safe," he told her. "He could wake up knowing that the worst is behind him."

"But is it?"

He looked over at her.

"I mean, we don't really know _what_ they did to him. We just know the _results_. What if they did more than we can see?"

"We won't know until he wakes up."

She nodded solemnly. "The doctors can't even be sure he _will_ wake up." She sighed quietly. "Nicki asked me the other day if he was going to die."

"Sean and Jack have asked Danny and Linda the same question," Frank informed her.

"What did they tell the boys?" she asked.

"That they didn't know."

"That's what I told Nicki." Erin shook her head sadly. "I can't lie to her, but I don't want to hurt her, either. I don't know if he's going to wake up, if he's going to be okay… I just… we just don't know. And I wish I could just tell Nicki everything was going to be okay like I could when I was a kid, but…"

"She's growing up," Frank supplied for her. "She's almost seventeen. Can't keep lying to her or trying to protect her."

"Because if I say things will be fine and, God forbid, Jamie dies… she'd never forgive me."

He nodded. "Danny and Linda said the same thing about the boys. But somehow, I think Nicki would be more understanding and forgiving."

She snorted slightly. "She's still a teenager, and I'm still her mother. I'll believe it when I see it."

Frank chuckled slightly.

Jamie's hand twitched, causing both of them to look over at him. His face was still peaceful, still marred by bruises that were slow to fade away and scabs that were threatening to become scars. Any time Jamie twitched, they wondered if it was more than just the reflex his doctor said it was. But his lungs were healing, and they were weaning him off of the ventilator to where by tomorrow morning, he could come off of it.

Barring any complications, of course.

Frank put his hand on his youngest child's forearm silently. He, like the rest of the family, was praying that Jamie would wake up soon. Once he did, the unanswered questions _might_ be answered. After all, Jamie had been spending a lot of time with Danny lately, and was getting better at hiding things.

Erin stood up, walking over and giving Jamie a kiss on the forehead. "I should get back to Nicki," she said to her father, squeezing his shoulder and kissing his cheek as he returned the kiss. "I'll see you both later."

"Okay, sweetheart," Frank said.

She smiled briefly at him before leaving the room.

He looked back at Jamie, giving his forearm a gentle squeeze. Frank closed his eyes, praying silently that at this time tomorrow, things would be different. That this four-day holding pattern of vigils over an unconscious family member would soon come to an end.

Hopefully in a happy manner.


	10. Chapter 9: Maria

A/N: Thank you all so much for the fantastic reviews! I love them! :D See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review!

* * *

Chapter Nine

"Sit your ass down," Maria said, dropping Freddy Jasper onto the hard metal of the interrogation chair. "We got Honor in another room, and she's singing like a bird, 'cause she don't wanna go to prison. So, if you want any sort of deal, you might wanna make this easy on all of us."

"Who says I need a damn deal?" Freddy replied. "I ain't done nothin' wrong."

"Oh?" Maria looked over at Danny, who was leaning against the wall quietly. "He ain't done nothin' wrong. Guess we should let him go then, huh?"

Danny snorted, walking over to the table and leaning in close to Freddy's face. "See, I know a thing or two about families," he said softly. "I know about your family. Andre, big brother, replacement for the deadbeat father that walked out after Liam was born. Well, he went upstate for murder. And that… that just tore your mom apart, didn't it?"

"Don't you dare talk about my mom," Freddy warned darkly.

"So Nate concocts this idea for revenge. Go after the family that put your brother away."

"Honor's already confessed to crashing her car into that of Officer Jameson Reagan," Maria told Freddy. "Also mentioned how she tried to coax him into the van. And when that didn't work, she said you and Nate grabbed him."

Freddy shook his head. "I don't know what she's talkin' about," he said.

"Where'd you guys keep him, Freddy?" Danny growled out.

"I didn't have anything to do with anything."

Danny stood up, leaving Maria to lean in this time. "He's gonna rip your head off if you don't tell us," she informed Freddy. "And, actually, I just might let him. You know why?"

"You're sleepin' with him?" Freddy retorted.

Maria snorted. "He's married, you dumb ass. Detective Reagan here is my partner. And partners look out for each other."

Freddy stiffened. "Officer Reagan's older brother."

"Damn straight," Danny snapped.

Freddy groaned. "Friggen' Nate," he grumbled. "He couldn't leave well enough alone. Well, I don't know what Honor told you, but I didn't have anything to do with it. I'll tell you everything, but I swear to you, I wasn't involved. And when you search the warehouse I tell you about, you'll be able to prove it."

Danny and Maria shared a look.

"I swear to you," Freddy continued. "I tried to talk Nate out of it. But the only one he'd ever listen to was Andre, and Andre had no problem with what Nate was proposing. I'm sorry about what they did to your brother. I thought I had gotten through to Nate. I really did." Freddy shook his head again. "I'm so sorry, Detective Reagan."

Danny walked out, not wanting to hear any more.

Maria watched him walk away before turning back to Freddy. She slid a pad of yellow paper and a pen over to him. "You write out what happened," she told him. "Every detail. When it gets forwarded to the DA, maybe your sentence for conspiracy gets lessened."

"But I didn't conspire," Freddy said. "I tried to stop them."

"But you also didn't report them. And you tried to hide everything once it was done. That's conspiracy after the fact." She stood up. "Write your statement. I'll be back."

Freddy nodded, grabbing the pen as a uniformed officer walked in to watch him while Maria went off in search of Danny.

* * *

She located him out behind the building, pacing back and forth. "We still need to grab Nate and Liam," Danny said to her as she walked up.

"We've got cops on anyone who's ever laid eyes on them," Maria replied. "They'll turn up soon."

"Freddy makin' his statement?"

"Yeah."

"You believe him?"

She shrugged. "I'll believe him when the evidence backs him up."

He nodded quietly.

"You okay?"

Danny sighed heavily. "Findin' them ain't gonna make Jamie better," he said.

"Makes him safer," she replied.

"Until the next time someone comes after the family. I gotta get him a girlfriend or somethin', just so he isn't alone."

Maria smirked. "You really think Jamie's gonna go for that?"

Danny shook his head. "It's either that, or he's gotta move back in with someone."

"Danny, you can't protect your kid brother 24/7. No one can. Jamie's a damn good cop. He can hold his own."

He frowned slightly.

"Hell, he managed to get away from the Jaspers all on his own. He ran on a broken leg for miles. He's damn strong," Maria finished.

"I know," Danny said softly.

She put her hand on his shoulder. "I know you're upset, but Jamie's getting better. You said so yourself. And we'll have the other two in custody soon, so this threat'll be gone. It's going to be okay, Danny."

"You don't know that for sure, Maria."

She shrugged. "We all have faith. I'm just willing to say it out loud."

He smiled slightly. "Thanks."

"Anytime. Now, what do you say we hit up this warehouse and close this damn case, huh?"

"Deal."


	11. Chapter 10: Linda

A/N: Thanks so much for all the awesome reviews! See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you all enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Ten

Linda was sitting with Jamie at the moment that Danny walked in. She looked over at him wordlessly, finding him to be somewhat lighter than before. "We got them all," he said simply.

Linda smiled, standing up and hugging Danny tightly.

"Freddy gave them all up," he continued as he held her. "Nate didn't make it out of the fight, but he won't be hurting Jamie anymore. And Liam and Honor are already working with Heath on plea deals."

Linda squeezed her husband gently. "You did good," she told him.

He nodded. "Not gonna bring Jamie back, but at least those who hurt him are off the streets."

"Which is better than nothin'."

"Yeah," Danny sighed, looking at his brother.

Linda frowned. "Do you want me to leave you alone with him?" she asked.

"Not right now. Right now, I just wanna stay like this."

She nodded, resting her head against his shoulder. "I love you."

"I love you too."

She smiled to herself as she thought of the first time she'd ever met Jamie. She had been sitting with Danny in his car, waiting to pick Jamie up from practice, and the couple, being bored, had started kissing. Much to the disgust of a much-younger Jamie, who threatened to tell Mom. Which wasn't much of a threat to Danny, or Linda for that matter. But it was the best Jamie could come up with at the time.

"What's so funny?" Danny asked softly.

"First time I met Jamie," Linda replied.

Danny immediately smiled. "You were kissy-girl for a solid three weeks," he said, chuckling.

Linda nodded again, smiling wider. "He's a good kid."

"Yeah," Danny sighed. "Good cop."

Linda hugged Danny closer.

"Sydney came to see me yesterday," he told her.

"Erin mentioned it," she replied. "How's she doing?"

Danny shrugged. "Unmarried, I think. Said part of her still loves Jamie."

Linda snorted. "I can see it. You Reagans are hard to love, but even harder to let go of."

He smiled slightly. "Other than that, she's doing well. Next in line for partner in her firm."

She nodded. "Good for her."

"I told her she was welcome to come by."

"I'd like to see her."

"I think everyone would," Danny said.

"Except maybe Jamie," Linda added.

"I think he'd be okay. He still cares about her."

"True. Wasn't like those two broke up because they hated each other."

"Hazard of the job."

Linda sighed, holding Danny. "You doin' okay?" she asked him.

"Fine," Danny stonewalled immediately. At her look, though, he faltered slightly. "I will be when he wakes up."

"They're gonna take the vent out in a few hours. From there, they'll probably just let him wake up on his own. They won't add any more sedative."

"He's already out. Why sedate him in the first place?"

"He might not have stayed out, and trust me, it's worse when they fight the vent."

He sighed softly, resting his cheek against the top of her head. "He'll wake up, right?" he asked softly.

She didn't answer, but he didn't exactly need her to, either. Because they both knew the only answer they had for that question was based more on faith than fact.

They stood together in silence for a few moments more before she sighed. "I better get going," she said. "The boys need to be fed and put to bed."

"I'm gonna stay here tonight," Danny told her.

Linda nodded. "I'll bring you some fresh clothes later."

Danny nodded quietly.

She leaned up, giving him a quick kiss. "I'll see you later," she said. "Love you."

"Love you too," he told her, giving her a squeeze before she let go of him. She walked over to Jamie, squeezing his hand gently before walking out of the room. As she closed the door behind her, she watched her husband sink down onto the cot, staring at the unmoving form of his brother. Her heart broke as the door latch clicked behind her, and she prayed that it wouldn't be too much longer before Jamie came back to them.

No matter how he did it.


	12. Chapter 11: Jamie

A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! They're amazing. :) See the first chapter for the disclaimer. And now, for the moment you all have been waiting for... I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Eleven

_His chest felt like it was on fire._

_Breathing was shallow, when it happened._

_So much pain…_

_Must keep going…_

_He was running on what was likely a broken leg. With ribs that were probably broken as well. His wrist was hanging in a way it shouldn't be. And his head… God, did his head hurt._

_No more than the rest of him, though._

_His whole torso burned, front and back. Yet, he kept running. He _had_ to keep running. He needed to get away from them._

_Who were they, again?_

_He ran as long as he could, but then, he couldn't run anymore. His body was finally giving up on him. And as he collapsed to the dirty pavement in the alley, he found himself wondering if this was the end._

_They couldn't be _that_ far behind him. They were relatively healthy. Him… well… he was… injured._

_He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. He tried to cough, but all that came up was blood._

_Okay, so maybe he was a _little_ more than injured…_

_The world around him began to dull to a painful black, and he absently wondered why he couldn't even have less pain as he slipped toward unconsciousness. After all, wasn't that how it was supposed to happen? Succumb to the painless instead of choking on your own blood and gasping for air while your body felt like it was shattered into a million pieces?_

_He closed his eyes, and it wasn't long before he faintly heard a woman's scream…_

* * *

He gripped the bed sheets below his hands, clenching his fists tightly. The world was still dark, the pain still in existence, but he was laying on something a lot softer than dirty pavement. And someone was beside him, sitting next to his right hand. The one that was casted. The one attached to the broken wrist.

He kept his eyes closed, groaning softly. He wanted to go back to a painless oblivion. He didn't want this reality.

"Jamie."

Danny's voice was a soft whisper, and Jamie couldn't be sure that it was actually Danny's _voice_ that was that soft, or if Jamie just couldn't _hear_ him. But Jamie felt the warmth of Danny's hand hovering over his long before their skin ever made contact.

"It's okay, Jamie. You're safe now."

_That's a matter of opinion._

Jamie tried to swallow, but his mouth was dry and his throat was sore and scratchy. He wanted to move, but everything hurt so damn bad…

The door opened, and he heard Danny say quietly, "I think he's waking up."

"Jamie?" a woman's voice said. "I'm Sarah. I'm a nurse here. Can you hear me?"

Jamie wasn't sure how exactly to respond. His head hurt too much to move, and his throat was too dry and sore to speak.

He felt Danny squeeze the fingers of his right hand gently. "If you can hear us, squeeze my hand," Danny said softly.

_How cheesy._ Jamie, however, obliged Danny's request with a gentle squeeze.

A straw soon made its way against Jamie's lips, and he took a sip of the cool liquid. It did little to soothe his throat pain, but it definitely helped his dry condition…

"Can you open your eyes?" Danny asked.

"Hurts," Jamie whispered.

"I know, kid. But you gotta look at me."

"Why?"

"Yeah, you're fine," Danny retorted gently.

Jamie took another sip from the cup, wincing with swallowing. He felt Sarah assessing him, checking his wounds, and he quietly followed her directions as best he could without causing himself more pain. Which was incredibly difficult when she was asking for deep breaths…

"I'm gonna come right back with some pain medicine," Sarah said. "And some ice. That should help your throat a little."

"Thanks," Jamie whispered.

He heard her departing footsteps, and allowed his head to drift toward his right side slowly. He kept his eyes closed, though, as his head and neck throbbed, along with the rest of his body, in time with the rhythm of his heartbeat.

"I can make the room darker, if you want," Danny offered quietly.

Jamie didn't say anything, but he felt Danny get up and heard him walk around the room. He was making his way back to the bed when Sarah walked in.

"Here's the ice," she said. "And I'm gonna inject this into your IV, okay? That should get it to start working fastest."

"Thanks," Jamie whispered again.

Sarah worked quickly, and after a few minutes, Jamie felt her hand against his left shoulder. "Do you need anything else?" she asked softly.

"No," he replied.

"Okay. I'm gonna come back and check in with you in a few minutes, okay?"

"'Kay."

She left the room again, leaving the two brothers alone. Danny chose to sit on Jamie's left side this time, though.

"Here," Danny said, practically shoving an ice chip into Jamie's mouth.

"Don't," Jamie said as he sucked on the ice. "Don' need you babyin' me."

"When have I ever babied you?"

"Don' care."

"How're you feelin'?"

"Shit hurts," Jamie whispered harshly, finally peeking his right eye open.

Danny nodded quietly, sitting back slightly.

And though Jamie knew he should feel bad for snapping at Danny when Danny was only admitting he was concerned, part of Jamie didn't want to deal with it right now. He didn't want Danny's sympathy. He just wanted to be left alone.

"M'sorry," Jamie said half-heartedly. "M'tired."

"Get some sleep," Danny told him, standing.

"Mmmm."

"I'll be here."

Jamie didn't want Danny to hang around, but he knew he'd never get rid of his older brother no matter how hard he tried. He heard the creaking of the cot across the room, and Jamie gathered that Danny's quick concession had a lot to do with sleep deprivation.

"D'nny?" Jamie asked quietly after a moment.

"Yeah, kid?" he replied.

"What day 'sit?"

"Sunday. You were out for about five days."

"When's last time you slept?"

Danny scoffed slightly. "Don't worry about me."

Jamie didn't reply, but he knew it wasn't long after lying down that Danny was out on the cot.

Jamie opened his eyes, looking over at his older brother as he slept. Danny was doing everything he could to make Jamie more comfortable right now, and Jamie… Jamie was having a hard time caring too much about that at the moment. All he wanted to do was get away from everyone and go home.

He shifted his weight in the bed, and though it did nothing to make him more comfortable, he started to realize nothing would right now. Hospital beds weren't exactly the most conducive things for sleep, but Jamie figured he should try anyway.

If not for himself, for his family.


	13. Chapter 12: Erin

A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! See the first chapter for disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Twelve

While her older brother was definitely asleep on the cot, her younger brother was definitely awake but lying with his eyes closed. She hesitated, not sure what he was going to say or do as she walked into his room.

"M'not gonna bite," he muttered quietly, though he didn't open his eyes.

"I know," she replied softly as she took a few steps closer to the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Everything hurts," he told her.

She nodded, noting the underlying anger in his voice. "Did the doctor come in?"

"Shined a damn light in my damn eyes for five damn minutes. _After_ I told him I had a damn headache."

She frowned slightly. "They have to check your pupils."

"Not for five damn minutes, though. How long does it really take? Oh look, they move. They're equal. We're done. Thirty seconds tops."

Erin shook her head as she rolled her eyes slightly. "I'm sorry you have a headache," she told him softly.

Jamie didn't respond.

"I see Danny's here," she continued as she sat down in the chair beside the bed. Normally, she would've sat down on the bed, but she didn't want to push Jamie when he was already in a bad mood.

"Yeah," he said. "Can't get rid of him, like errant super glue."

"I heard that," Danny muttered in his sleep.

"Yeah, but you won't remember that when you wake up."

Danny snored in response.

"I forgot he does that," Erin said with a smile.

"He's been mumbling on and off for the last hour," Jamie replied. "He says some weird stuff."

Erin nodded. "Remember the time that we recorded him?"

Jamie smiled slightly, opening his eyes to look at Erin. "I still say we should've turned that into America's Funniest Home Videos."

She chuckled. "Yeah, we could've taken home top prize."

"M'not a piece of meat," Danny mumbled.

Jamie and Erin looked at each other before laughing softly.

Jamie scrubbed his free hand over his face, rubbing his eyes slightly. "Damn, I must look as bad as I feel, huh?" he said.

"You looked worse before," she told him.

"Would it kill them to brush a patient's hair once in a while?"

"You want a comb and a mirror?"

He shook his head. "It's held up this long. A little longer won't kill it."

She nodded. "And, just so you know, Linda brushed your hair almost every day. It _was_ worse."

"I don't even want to know." He scratched his forehead. "Little dark, wasn't it?"

"Your hair?" At his nod, she said, "Yeah, it was."

"I need a shower to get the damn blood out, but I got a damn cast," he grumbled.

"Shut up, m'tryin' to sleep," Danny muttered, rolling over.

"Go home and sleep," Jamie countered.

"Bite me."

"He keeps this up, I'm throwing a damn pillow," Jamie said to Erin.

"Now, now, let's not fight," Erin replied.

"I'm not talking about fighting. I'm talking about throwing a pillow at him. Because that would be funny."

"It would until he killed you."

He shrugged. "He won't kill me. Not while I'm here."

She smiled sadly.

"Hey, don't start," he warned. "Look, I'm awake. I'm talking. I'm alright. Yeah, everything hurts, but I'll be fine."

"Shouldn't I be the one comforting you?" she said softly.

He snorted. "Yeah, I guess, but you're the one who looks like she wants to cry, so I figured I'd just step in here."

She frowned.

"Would a hug make you feel better?" he asked, giving her a mildly sarcastic look.

"Okay, now you're just patronizing me," she replied, smiling slightly.

"Touché."

"Stop talkin' 'bout tushies," Danny piped up.

"Should we get him ear plugs?" Jamie asked Erin. "I'm sure they could find some somewhere around here."

She shook her head. "He'd probably still keep talking."

"True, but at least it wouldn't be dead-asleep commentary hour."

"Better than drunken commentary hour."

Jamie laughed softly. "Oh, I forgot about drunken commentary hour."

Erin smiled.

He shook his head, scratching his chest before scratching his head. "I hate burns," he commented. "Because not only do they hurt like hell, but they're also so damn itchy."

"Yeah," she replied softly as he picked at his dressings. "Keep that up, and Linda will put mittens on your hands."

"Oh, bring it on. Mittens can come off easily."

"Not if she duct tapes them on."

Jamie shrugged. "I like a challenge."

Erin smiled wider, shaking her head. "Yeah, you're fine," she said softly.

But her heart knew he wasn't. She saw this for what it was- his way of hiding, avoiding dealing with what just happened. And for now, she was happy to indulge him, but that wasn't going to last much longer. Sooner or later, he was going to have to come to terms with what happened. And they would all be there for him.

As long as he didn't shut them out.

Danny rolled over as he woke up, stretching his tired limbs. "Hey, sis," he said softly. "When did you get here?"

"Some time before you told me to bite you," Jamie replied bitterly.

Danny looked at his younger brother curiously. "I did what?"

Erin laughed.


	14. Chapter 13: Henry

A/N: Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews! I wish I could guarantee regular postings, but things are crazy right now and getting crazier by the day. Anyway, see the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Thirteen

Henry walked in to find the bed empty.

His heart skipped a beat, wondering what had happened to his grandson. He knew that Danny and Erin had just left, and that they had said Jamie was awake and talking. He was doing fine.

So where the hell was he?

The bathroom door opened, and out hopped his battered grandson, who stopped the moment he noticed Henry standing there. Jamie was standing on his (relatively) good foot, holding the IV pole with his (relatively) good hand, waiting for Henry to say something.

"I won't tell if you don't," Henry said with a smile.

Jamie smiled back. "Deal."

Henry moved over to attempt to aid Jamie back into bed, but was waved off.

"I got myself into this mess, I'll get myself out."

Henry backed up, allowing Jamie to hop back to the bed and maneuver himself in. "You got this all figured out already," the older man commented.

Jamie shrugged. "When you gotta go, you gotta go," he replied. "Tubes be damned."

Henry chuckled. "Spoken like a true Reagan."

Jamie smirked.

"So, I take it the pain's not too bad, then," Henry said.

Jamie shrugged again. "I'll live."

"Now you sound like Danny."

"At least I don't talk in my sleep."

Henry smiled as he sat down next to Jamie on the bed. "How are you doing, kid?"

"Fine."

"Any time you wanna stop lying."

Jamie snorted slightly. "Can't get anything past you, can I, Grandpa?"

Henry shook his head.

"My throat still hurts a little," Jamie said. "Everything hurts. And itches. But, I'll live."

Henry nodded. "What do you remember?" he asked.

Jamie made a face as he shook his head. "Bits and pieces. Not much."

This time, Henry didn't call him on his lie. "Anything you want to talk about?"

Jamie shook his head again. "Not right now. Maybe later."

"Anytime, son. You know that."

Jamie nodded. "I know. Thanks."

"So, I think Nicki was going to drop by later," Henry said, changing topics.

"That'd be nice," Jamie said. "I'd like to see her."

"And the boys'll probably be in, too, at some point. They'll be happy to see you."

"They haven't been in yet?"

Henry shrugged. "You were unconscious and on a ventilator in the ICU. They moved you after they took you off, but before that, it would've been tough on the boys if they'd been allowed in there."

Jamie nodded slightly. "I hadn't really thought about it."

"Yeah, well, you're okay now. That's what's important."

Jamie shrugged minutely. "I'm awake. I'm getting better, but I'll be okay when it doesn't hurt half as bad." He absently scratched at the bandages.

"Linda's gonna put mittens on you if you keep doing that," Henry told him.

Jamie smirked. "Erin said the same thing," he replied. "I like a challenge."

Henry shook his head. "Yeah, you're okay."

Jamie smiled.

But both of them knew that he wasn't. There were a lot of issues that they hadn't even scratched the surface of, yet Henry could tell Jamie wasn't about to make that easy for them. Not that Henry could blame him. From what he already knew, Jamie had been through hell. And it wasn't going to be an overnight thing that suddenly he was okay. It would take a while. But they had to start somewhere, and Jamie wasn't giving them much of a jumping off point.

Typical Reagan.

For as many differences as Henry and Jamie had, he could tell that his grandson was definitely cut from the same cloth as the rest of them. Perhaps stronger than the rest of them. Henry couldn't remember the last time any of them had been able to run miles to get away from someone after being half as beat up as Jamie had been.

Then again, it wasn't something that happened every day.

Jamie had survived something that was definitely horrible, and he would get through it with them, but he needed to start the conversation. Otherwise, his Reagan stubbornness would take over and shut everyone out.

"Grandpa?" Jamie asked, interrupting his thoughts.

"Yeah," Henry replied.

"You alright?"

Henry snorted slightly. "I should be asking you that."

"You already did, and I already answered."

Henry smirked. "Okay, Counselor."

Jamie rolled his eyes slightly.

"I'm just worried about you," he told his grandson honestly.

"I'm okay, Grandpa. I'm alive. That's more than I had hoped for."

Henry nodded sadly. "Did Danny tell you they caught them?"

"He mentioned it," Jamie replied. "Told me not to worry about it, though."

Henry chuckled. "Of course he did."

"The family that slays together, huh?"

Henry furrowed his brow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Andre was a killer. And the other kids… they were pretty damn intent on killing me. That I remember."

Henry nodded. "How'd you get away?"

Jamie shrugged. "I ran."

"Before that," Henry said.

Jamie shook his head. "I don't really know," he replied.

Another lie, Henry realized sadly. Instead of calling him on it, though, Henry simply nodded again, patting his grandson's leg. Though, another grave realization struck Henry as he sat there.

Why was Jamie lying? Was it because he didn't trust them, or was it more about self-preservation?


	15. Chapter 14: Nicki

A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! You're all incredibly awesome. :D See the first chapter for the disclaimer. This chapter is a lot more of the comfort piece of the story. As always, I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review.

* * *

Chapter Fourteen

Nicki's arms encircled her uncle's neck tightly, and she was very happy to feel his arms wrap around her back. She kissed him gently on the cheek, and he smiled, giving her a kiss on the forehead.

She lay down next to him on his better side, hanging onto him in the process. He pulled her closer, and she looked at him. "Am I hurting you?" she asked.

"You're fine," Jamie replied gently.

She nodded, resting her head against his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I worried you," he said.

"It's not your fault," she replied. "You didn't ask for this."

He nodded sadly. "When did you become so smart?"

She smiled.

"Your mom said you were pretty upset," Jamie told her. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Nicki shrugged. "It was hard seeing you… like that. I wasn't… I mean, my mom told me it was bad, but…"

"I'm sorry you had to see me like that."

She hugged him tightly. "I didn't _have_ to come in. I _wanted_ to. And I don't regret it. But it was hard."

He nodded, hugging her back. "I'm okay."

She picked her head up to look at him. "You're a bad liar, Uncle Jamie."

He shook his head. "You get more and more like your mother every day."

She smiled.

"Fine," he said. "I'm not okay yet, but I will be."

"I know," she said. "You have us."

"I know."

She nodded to herself, moving off his shoulder somewhat. "How's the pain?"

He shrugged. "Not as bad as it was when I woke up. Still hurts, but now it's also itchy, too."

"Don't scratch it," she warned.

"I know," he replied. "I've been told Aunt Linda wouldn't be too happy about it."

"I'm sure you'd figure out a way."

He smiled. "That's what I keep saying."

She smiled back. "I'm glad you're getting better, Uncle Jamie. I was worried about you. We all were."

"I'm sorry, honey."

"I know, but it's not your fault. It's theirs."

Jamie nodded stiffly. "Yeah."

Nicki noticed the change in his demeanor. "I'm sorry, Uncle Jamie. I don't want to make you more upset."

He shook his head slowly. "It's okay. It's gonna happen whether I want it to or not."

She nodded. "Do you remember a lot about what happened?"

He shook his head again. "Not much."

"Are you lying again?"

"No, sweetie, I'm not lying."

She turned to look him in the eye, and while she knew he was still lying to her, she decided not to call him out on it. Mostly because she realized that there had to be a good reason why he was lying, and that she might be better off not knowing that particular reason. She kissed him gently on the cheek in lieu of a response.

Yet, she noticed that he knew she didn't believe him.

Neither one spoke, though. Instead, they turned on the TV and settled into a soap opera, since it was the middle of the day and there was nothing else on.


	16. Chapter 15: Danny

A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! I'm sorry updates are coming slowly... I've been super busy lately, but since this is the first of a two-parter, I'll try not to go too long in between updates. See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Fifteen

Danny walked into the hospital room, finding Jamie sitting up in bed and eating lunch. The younger Reagan was still pretty beat up looking, but the bandages were slowly coming off as the wounds underneath healed. Jamie was currently struggling to feed himself with his casted right arm.

"I get sick of using the left," he offered.

"Wasn't gonna say a word," Danny replied.

"I keep telling them they need to give me things I can pick up, like pizza that actually tastes like pizza. Not this flavorless crap that I need a damn fork for."

Danny lifted up a bag from Burger King and passed it over to Jamie.

"You're my favorite brother," Jamie said, opening the bag.

Danny just smirked.

Jamie pulled out a cheeseburger, unwrapping it. He took a bite as Danny sat down on the foot of the bed. "Much better," he mumbled.

"Yeah, I thought so," Danny replied.

Jamie took another bite, looking over at his older brother. "So, are you just feeding me, or is this a bribe?"

"I need to ask you some questions."

Jamie nodded. "I figured when I saw fries and onion rings."

Danny shrugged slightly with a small smile. "Just trying to get the most information out of you."

"I don't remember much."

"Do you _really_ think that any of us _actually_ believe that?"

Jamie inhaled slowly before sighing softly. "I keep hoping so," he replied. "But, no. I know you guys know better."

Danny frowned. "I know it hurts, kid, but you need to tell me what happened. And why we found three dead bodies in the warehouse."

Jamie froze mid-bite. "You found the warehouse?"

Danny nodded. "Freddy Jasper told us everything. Honor and Liam are going down, but we need your statement too."

"Can I finish eating first?"

Danny shrugged. "You can talk to me now or later, but you're gonna have to talk to me and tell me what happened."

Jamie nodded. "I know," he whispered. "I just… I…" He shook his head, stopping himself.

"I'm sorry, kid. I wish this didn't happen. But we gotta finish this up."

"I know," Jamie whispered again. "I'm so sorry, Danny."

Danny frowned. "You don't gotta apologize, kid."

Jamie didn't respond, picking at the fries and the rest of his cheeseburger.

Danny watched his younger brother, wondering how bad it had been for Jamie. And while he felt like he would have an answer soon, Danny wasn't entirely sure he _wanted_ an answer. Because then he would want to go after Nate, Honor, and Liam, which wouldn't matter for Nate, seeing as how the guy was dead. But Honor and Liam…

He had half a mind to tell Erin to make sure that Liam and Freddy ended up nowhere near Andre. Liam hadn't played ball, but Andre and Freddy had cooperated, so that earned the two of them something.

Or so the DA thought.

Danny would just as soon lock them up and throw away the key. Allow them to get their asses kicked by the other prisoners. But if deals weren't made, no matter how shady and annoying they would be, other people would stop cooperating.

Danny shifted his position on the bed, looking again at Jamie. His younger brother was still healing physically, and though he'd been awake for a couple of days, Danny knew this wasn't easy on the kid. It wasn't going to be easy. Jamie had spent half of his time awake in denial, and the other half in distraction. And the family was happy to indulge him, but Danny couldn't afford that anymore.

The case needed to be closed, and the only thing outstanding was Jamie's statement.


	17. Chapter 16: Jamie

A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! You guys are awesome! See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I promised you all I wouldn't make you wait too long for part 2. I hope you guys enjoy it, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Sixteen

Jamie swallowed the last of his lunch, looking over at his older brother. Danny had waited patiently while he ate, and while Jamie still didn't want to talk, he knew the time had come. Jamie wiped his mouth with a napkin, tossing it onto the tray table. He pushed it aside before shifting in bed. "Where do you want me to start?" he asked softly.

"The beginning," Danny replied, shifting his weight on the bed as he pulled out his notebook.

"I was driving home from Dad's, got hit. When I went to get out of the car, a woman walked up, started apologizing. Said her information was in her car. I got out, and she tried to get me to get into her car. I knew something wasn't right. Then the van pulled up, and two other guys got out… I tried to get back into my car so I could get away. I fought them, Danny."

"I know you did," Danny assured.

Jamie inhaled slowly, closing his eyes as he exhaled. "They got the drop on me, and then… I don't remember. The next thing I remember, I was waking up… They wanted me to talk. About you. About Erin. About how to get you guys, when you would be alone, how they could strike best… I didn't tell them…"

* * *

_Nate sighed, exasperated. "Seriously, Jameson, how dumb can you be?" he asked._

_Jamie spat blood from his mouth in response._

_Liam grabbed Jamie by the hair, jerking his head back abruptly. Nate walked over, standing directly in front of Jamie's face. "Just tell us what we want to know, and maybe you might walk out of here," he said._

"_I'm not telling you a damn thing," Jamie growled._

_Nate rolled his eyes, pulling out a knife from behind his back. "You know we can do worse. You're well aware of just how bad we can be. Just tell us what we want to know."_

"_Kill me for all I care. I'm not telling you anything."_

_Nate nodded to Liam, who punched Jamie square in the chest. Jamie felt his ribs crack in his chest, but he forced himself not to react. He was determined not to let Nate and Liam have any idea how bad he was hurting._

_Nate gently ran the blade of the knife down Jamie's chest, using just enough pressure to let him feel it but not enough to cut him. "You tell us what we want to know, and maybe no one else has to get hurt beyond you guys."_

"_You would never survive if you went after the kids," Jamie warned darkly._

"_You won't survive if you don't talk," Nate replied._

"_Then kill me. Because I'm not telling you a damn thing."_

_Nate slammed Jamie's head against the wall before storming out._

* * *

Jamie exhaled slowly as he paused the story, glancing over at Danny. Danny wouldn't look him in the eye, and Jamie absently wondered if that was because he was mad at Jamie or if it was something else.

Danny swallowed as he kept scribbling in the notebook. "What happened next?" he pressed as he caught up with his notes. Yet, he still didn't look up.

Jamie sighed heavily. "They got creative…"

* * *

_Jamie screamed in agony as the hot charcoal burned into the tender flesh of his arm. Nate eventually pulled it away after a few minutes, leaving Jamie gasping at the pain. "Just tell us what we want to know, and the pain stops," Nate reiterated._

"_Just go to hell," Jamie replied._

"_You _do_ know we _can_ do more, right?"_

"_I already told you to kill me, and you haven't listened to that direction yet. So, I don't think I care _what_ you do."_

_Nate scoffed. "We're just getting warmed up, Jameson. We have so many more options to choose from." Nate pushed the charcoal against Jamie's chest, causing him to scream again. "Do you really think we'll stop at you and your siblings? Jack, Sean, Nicki… they're easy like you. Linda would do anything for those boys, as would Frank and Henry. And Sydney… your beloved Sydney… never really did get over her, did you?"_

_Jamie struggled to catch his breath as Nate pulled the charcoal away. "I hate Sydney," he told Nate. "And going after any one of us is suicide. Do what you want with me. You'll be dead when this is over."_

* * *

"Damn straight," Danny muttered, bringing Jamie out of the past.

Jamie closed his eyes, tired. He wanted nothing more than to hunker down in bed and never finish the story, but he knew he had to. The sooner the case closed, the sooner it would all be over. But, yet… "I don't hate Sydney," Jamie said.

"I know you don't, kid," Danny replied, looking at his younger brother.

Jamie nodded to himself. "I just thought it would save her. She really has no part in this."

"I know."

Jamie sighed again, trying not to let his emotions get the best of him. He knew, though, that he needed to just finish this. _Just get through it…_

Danny seemed to sense that Jamie needed some prodding to keep going, so he said, "what happened next?"

* * *

_Honor watched Jamie quietly, standing at the doorway as he lay shackled and broken on the floor. She didn't say a word, but she didn't need to. Jamie could tell she was scared of her brothers and just along for the ride._

_The door flew open before Jamie addressed her, and in dropped another bound person with a bag over his head. Jamie stiffened as the rough outline was that of his older brother. Liam followed with two women who, from a distance, resembled his sister and his niece. Jamie inhaled sharply._

"_Not so tough now, are you?" Nate sneered._

"_Do whatever you want to me," Jamie replied. "Just leave them alone."_

* * *

"It was never us," Danny said, looking at Jamie.

Jamie swallowed thickly. "I know that," he replied softly. "I knew that. But even if it wasn't you three, it was still three innocent people."

"They weren't all innocent. The guy was someone we had suspected had been with Andre that night, but were never able to prove it. The woman was…"

"The key witness," Jamie interrupted. "And her daughter. I know. And they're all dead because of me."

"Hey, listen to me," Danny said, grabbing his younger brother's hand. "This. Is not. Your fault. Period. You didn't do anything wrong. Nothing."

Jamie shook his head, steeling himself. "It doesn't matter now," he muttered. "They're already gone."

Danny closed his eyes at the pain in Jamie's voice. "I'm sorry, kid."

Jamie exhaled slowly. "After Nate was done, he said that this time, he was going out for the real thing…"

* * *

_The two of them sat amongst the bodies, Honor scared out of her mind and Jamie hurt and pissed. There was no doubt in his mind that Nate was about to make good on his promise, and Jamie would be watching his siblings die before him._

_That was, until Honor stepped forward. "I didn't sign up for this," she said softly._

"_I can help you get out of this," Jamie offered blindly. "But, you gotta help me."_

_Honor scoffed. "Save it, Officer. Just get your ass out of here." She untied him. "But, at least make it look good before you do."_

_Jamie sighed softly, knowing what she meant. "I'm so sorry, Honor."_

"_Just make it look good," she asserted._

_Jamie nodded to himself._

* * *

"So, she let you go," Danny said.

Jamie nodded. "And then called her brothers after giving me a few minutes to get away," he said. "Getting back at us was one thing. But those three people… that little girl… that wasn't part of the plan. At least, not for Honor."

"They probably didn't tell her everything."

Jamie shook his head, swallowing hard.

"You ran about five miles," Danny told him.

Jamie shrugged. "Still thought it wasn't far enough," he replied.

"Five miles with crushed ribs and a broken leg."

"Next time, I'll shoot for ten."

Danny scoffed. "Let's not have a next time, okay?" he said.

Jamie nodded. "Deal," he replied.

Danny squeezed Jamie's shoulder lightly. "You'll be okay, Jamie. I know this is tough, but you'll be okay."

Jamie nodded again, sighing softly. "I think I've pretty much told you everything," he said.

Danny nodded, and Jamie wasn't sure if his older brother was really going to let the conversation drop, or if this was just the beginning. But, much to Jamie's surprise, Danny stood.

"I'm gonna go back to the station, file your statement, get this closed," he said. "Can I get you anything?"

Jamie shrugged. "You already fed me, so I'm good," he replied lightly. "But, maybe something sweet the next time you drop by?"

Danny rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you're fine."

Jamie smiled.

"I'm gonna head out, kid. I'll see you later."

"See ya, Danny," Jamie said as his older brother squeezed his shoulder again before leaving Jamie alone with his thoughts once again.


	18. Chapter 17: Maria

A/N: Thank you all so much for the fantastic reviews. They mean so much. :) See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Seventeen

Maria looked up as Danny walked back into the precinct with his notebook. "Jamie finally opened up?" she asked.

Danny nodded solemnly. "We can put this case to bed," he replied, sitting down behind his computer.

She nodded. "That's a good thing. So why do you look like crap?"

He didn't respond with anything more than a sigh.

"Danny, look," she said, moving to lean against his desk. "He's a young kid who survived hell physically. The rest? It's just aftermath. You, of all people, should know how to help him with that."

He looked up at her with a slight glare.

"Marine through and through, you think I couldn't guess when you served, and that somethin' bad went down?"

He shook his head and looked back at his computer.

"Type it up, put the case to bed, then take a few days," she advised. "Take care of your brother. He needs you more than I do."

"Oh, I don't know about that," Danny teased back lightly. "Someone's gotta keep you in line."

She shrugged with a small smile. "I got the Sarge."

"You really think that's good enough?"

"I'm gonna tell him you said that."

Danny smiled softly. "Thanks, Maria."

She shrugged. "Anytime." She moved away from his desk to sit back at hers. "I was serious about you takin' some time, though."

"I know you were."

"You've been like an angry zombie lately," she commented. "And, believe me, I don't blame you. Anyone goes after a member of my family, and I'd be the same way. But, now that the case is over, I think you need to take care of yourself and your family."

Danny didn't respond as he started typing up Jamie's statement.

"Your kid brother's gonna need you, even if he tells you he doesn't. And, given that he's a lot like you, he's definitely gonna tell you he's fine when he's not."

"I know," Danny said. "He's been doin' that all along. Except he's a bad liar. I wonder how he survives undercover."

"You know him too well," Maria replied. "That's why you see through all his lies. But it can't be easy seein' a 15 year old kid get killed in front of you for no reason."

He nodded. "Apparently, they were picked to be me, Erin, and Nicki."

She shook her head. "That's rough. How's Jamie takin' it?"

He shook his head in lieu of a verbal response.

"Sydney drop by to see him yet?" she asked, changing topics.

"I think she's still hidin' out," Danny replied. "Might be too busy, I don't know. I think she's more scared to see him than anything else."

"Can't say I blame her. I don't think I'd wanna face a room full of Reagans, no matter how long it's been since the breakup. But I'd think closure for them would be a good thing."

"What makes you think they never got closure?"

Maria shrugged. "He's still single. You said she's still carryin' a torch for him. You think they'll ever get back together?"

"Want me to call Linda so you two can discuss this?"

Maria chuckled softly. "Point taken."

Danny continued typing for a few minutes before saying, "no."

"No, what?" Maria asked.

"No, I don't think they'll get back together. They may still love each other, but they're both too involved in the work they do. She's close to becomin' a partner, she's not going to allow someone to distract her. And Jamie… he's too busy with the job, and who knows where his head is right now."

Maria nodded. "I keep forgetting it wasn't that long ago we lost Officer Cruz, too."

Danny closed his eyes, and Maria knew she'd struck a nerve. Rather than call it out, though, she waited for Danny to say something.

He didn't.

"I'm sorry," she said after a few minutes.

"You and me both," he replied dismally.

"You doin' okay with everythin'?"

Danny shrugged. "Jamie's awake and talking. I'm okay with that. Rest is aftermath, right?"

"Right," she replied.

The two of them allowed silence to continue as Danny typed up Jamie's statement. Once it was finished, he printed it out for Jamie to sign for the file.

"Gonna get him to do that now, or wait?" she asked.

Danny shook his head. "Better get it over and done with," he replied.

Maria nodded. "Tell him I said hi and that I hope he's feelin' better."

"Will do."

Maria gave Danny a small smile as he grabbed his coat and headed back out the door.


	19. Chapter 18: Frank

A/N: I'm so sorry for the long delay between updates. Life has been super crazy. I'm glad for all the wonderful reviews, and I promise you all, I haven't given up on this story. Anyway, see the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review!

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Chapter Eighteen

Frank had walked in hours ago when his youngest was already fast asleep in the bed. Now he sat in the visitor's chair, watching his son quietly. Though, unlike times in the recent past, Jamie was going to wake up and talk to him any minute now.

Jamie moaned in his sleep.

Frank knew what it looked like when Jamie had nightmares. He had seen it several times throughout his son's life. So he knew when to wake him up and when to let him sleep through it. This one was still in its early stages, but he had a good idea what kind of nightmare it would be.

Frank gently shook Jamie's shoulder, waking his son up.

Jamie cringed but tried his best not to react too overtly to the dream he'd been having. Frank, of course, saw right through it. He also was aware that Jamie knew Frank saw the reaction for what it was- a cover.

"You want to talk about it?" Frank asked as Jamie settled himself down.

"Not much to say," Jamie replied.

"You and I both know that's not true."

Jamie shook his head. "Just once, I wish I could lie to someone in this family and _actually_ get away with it."

Frank smiled slightly at Jamie's joke. "Try Sean or Jack."

"Jack's too smart for that already. Sean's the only one who completely believes me."

Frank smiled wider.

Jamie yawned, readjusting to sit up and grimacing with the movement. "I swear, it's getting better," he told his worried father.

"I know," Frank replied. "Before, you couldn't even sit up on your own."

Jamie nodded, yawning again.

"You want to go back to sleep?" Frank asked.

"Wasn't there a reason you woke me up?" Jamie countered.

Frank nodded.

"I'll be fine in a minute. I just need to wake up a little more is all."

Frank said nothing as Jamie readjusted again, this time with slightly less grimacing. After another yawn, his son pronounced, "I'm good."

Frank smiled slightly. "You want some coffee?" he asked.

Jamie shook his head. "I don't want to be up forever. Linda will make them drug me."

Frank chuckled. "I don't think so."

"She keeps threatening restraints if I keep picking at the bandages."

Frank smirked at the thought of his daughter-in-law threatening his youngest son.

"I keep telling her I'll just figure another way out of them," Jamie added with a grin.

"I wouldn't threaten the nurses," Frank reminded him.

"Not all of the nurses. Just Linda."

Frank chuckled again, shaking his head. He knew Jamie's jokes were more to hide his feelings than they were his attempt at being funny. Jamie tended to joke more when things were really bothering him, which was second only to him being completely silent. Though, Frank knew that if it hadn't been for his prolonged unconsciousness and the subsequent worry it caused, Jamie likely would be silent.

Jamie's jokes were his compensation for the rest of the family as much as it was for him.

Jamie looked over at his father. "Danny said they killed one but caught the others," he said.

Frank nodded.

Jamie shook his head. "Nate was… I mean, if you thought what Andre did was bad… Nate probably would've done worse. And Honor… what's going to happen to Honor? And Freddy, for that matter?"

"Freddy made a deal for conspiracy," Frank told him. "He got 5 years with Andre. Honor's deal earned her 20 years."

Jamie shook his head. "She just went along with it. She wasn't… she didn't… she more conspired than did anything. 20 years is harsh."

"She hurt you too, Jamie."

"Because she had to." Jamie shifted before practically whispering, "Nate and Liam would've killed her, Dad."

"I'm not the one you need to be saying this too," Frank told him gently.

"I know," Jamie breathed. "It's the DA. Though, when they get my statement…"

As if on cue, Danny walked in. "They'll get it once you sign it," he said, handing Jamie the paper. Jamie struggled to sign it with his good hand. "I'll come back later, after I got this filed and the case closed for good. Sound good?"

"Do I have a choice?" Jamie replied lightly.

"Nope." Danny patted Jamie's leg gently before leaving.

Jamie turned back to his father. "Has he been doing that the whole time?" he asked.

"Running in and out?" Frank replied. At Jamie's nod, he replied, "pretty much."

"Does he think it makes him more important when he does that?"

Frank smirked slightly. He was happy to indulge Jamie for the time being, knowing that he'd given his statement to Danny, which had forced him to at least talk a little bit about what had happened. As for anything else… they would deal with it as it came up.

Yet, Frank still asked, "how are you dealing with everything?"

Jamie didn't answer right away, which was another one of his tells. One that said things were very, very bad. "No sense in trying to lie to you," his son replied quietly. "I just don't know yet, Dad. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it."

"Understandable."

Jamie didn't say anything else, looking instead at his casted hand.

"This will hit you," Frank continued. "And, when it does, you'll figure out what you're feeling. Just know that we're all here for you, any time, day or night."

"I know," Jamie said quietly.

Frank nodded, watching his son.

"It's just… it's tough," the younger man said, his voice still soft. "Been a bad year."

"I know," Frank replied, matching his son's tone.

Jamie shook his head, effectively ending the conversation. Yet another tell of his…

"You might want to get some more sleep," Frank offered. "Your body's still healing."

Jamie nodded, readjusting to lie down once again. Frank patted his son's leg softly, saying nothing more as Jamie closed his eyes and tried to drift off to sleep once again.


End file.
